Customer Reviews

Spark! Circus returns to Koh Samui

Spark! Circus returns to Koh Samui

Spark! Circus, an international organisation supporting refugee children from Myanmar and Thailand put on four spectacular performances in Koh Samui in January.

The shows, which took place at W Resort and Dr Frogs Restaurant were attended by locals and visitors and organised to raise money that will go towards funding the group’s one-month-long tour in the north of Thailand, in the area surrounding Mae Sot.

Spark! Is a non-profit organisation that promotes health and wellbeing amongst children that have come from disadvantaged communities and backgrounds. Through classes in circus performances, music and dance, the children are able to build their confidence and learn new skills that they can take into their futures.

This year’s troupe of performers features entertainers and teachers from across the world, including Vietnam, Canada, Australia, the UK, the US and Myanmar. Spark! Has been touring the refugee camps of Thailand for 11 years, and a group that started out comprising a few fire performers has grown to encompass comedy, music and acrobatic performances.

Charlene Whitehead, the director of Spark! Circus, anticipates a bright future for the organisation. “It’s my third tour now and I just can’t get enough,” she says. “To pull up to those schools and camps and be greeted by hundreds of miles and screams of excitement, is just beyond magical.”

“We have been working in the Mae Sot region for 11 years, so we would like to take it to the next level there. The children are starting to pick up the circus skills that we have been teaching them, so we’re now providing them with longer, more intensive training,” she added.

Across the globe, circus performance is growing as a tool to support young children who have endured struggles from the early stages of their lives. Many of these children are very shy and quiet and are not encouraged to express themselves. Circus activities provide them with the tools to get into their bodies, play and communicate with the world in a different way,

Over the years, Koh Samui’s local community has provided consistent support for the children of the Spark! Circus. www.sparkcircus.org